Of course, in the near future, Joshua is defending his IBF heavyweight title against Dominic Breazeale, a bout which has a certain logic. “It’s a voluntary [defence], he’s had the same amount of fights,” Anthony said. “He’s tall so he’s good preparation so they’re looking at it in that aspect. I didn’t think I’d be fighting him, I thought I’d be fighting [Eric] Molina… That didn’t happen, [Breazeale was] an easy person to work with.”

But by winning the IBF crown, Joshua knows he is on a path that will lead him to Fury, the holder of the WBO and WBA heavyweight titles. “These fights will happen, I’ll make sure they happen because that’s my way of giving back but in the meanwhile I understand what I’m doing and that’s what matters to me,” he said.

Of his big-name rivals Anthony notes, “I go who were they fighting in their 16th fight? But then I want to fight them now. So there’s a balance isn’t it? So there’s a rush and there isn’t a rush. It’s where do you find the balance? It’s a tough place to be in.”

“I’ve got a version of the world title. It’s about who you beat now, it’s about who you fight,” Joshua continued. “The belt it gets you to fight the best, you need that belt, it’s a very important part of your development and then you need to get these names on your record 100%.”